a slight, sharp sound: At the click of the latch, the dog barked.
2.
a small device for preventing backward movement of a mechanism, as a detent or pawl.
3.
Phonetics. any one of a variety of ingressive, usually implosive, speech sounds, phonemic in some languages, produced by suction occlusion and plosive or affricative release.
4.
any one of a variety of familiar sounds used in calling or urging on horses or other animals, in expressing reprimand or sympathy, or produced in audible kissing.
–verb (used without object)
5.
to emit or make a slight, sharp sound, or series of such sounds, as by the cocking of a pistol: The door clicked shut.
6.
Informal.
a.
to succeed; make a hit: If the play clicks, the producer will be rich.
b.
to fit together; function well together: They get along in public, but their personalities don't really click.
c.
to become intelligible.
7.
Computers. to depress and release a mouse button rapidly, as to select an icon.
–verb (used with object)
8.
to cause to click.
9.
to strike together with a click: He clicked his heels and saluted.
[Origin: 1575–85; perh. imit., but perh. < D klick (n.), klikken (v.)]
click beetle, common name for members of the widespread beetle family Elateridae. Also called elater beetle, the click beetle has a hinge across the front of the body that allows it to flex, and a spine-and-groove arrangement on the underside of the body that provides a snapping mechanism. When a click beetle is turned on its back it cannot right itself by rolling onto its short legs. It arches its body upward so that only the ends touch the ground, then straightens suddenly, causing the spine to slide into the groove. This sends the beetle spinning through the air and produces a loud click. If the beetle lands on its back again it repeats the performance. A click beetle also snaps its body when it is picked up, which may cause the predator to drop it. Click beetles have long, flat bodies, generally rectangular, but curved at the ends. They range in length from 1/4 in. to 4 in. (6.4-102 mm); most are black or brown. Most adults are nocturnal leaf-eaters. The larvae, called wireworms, are destructive to a large variety of plants. Some tropical click beetles are brilliantly luminescent. Click beetles are classified in the phylum Arthropoda, class Insecta, order Coleoptera, family Elateridae.
![[P]](http://cache.lexico.com/g/r/premium_mh.gif){kind=small}
Audio Help [klik] Pronunciation Key 